Muslim Women in Europe

September 26, 2005

Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Dutch MP and author of the controversial film Submission, addressed the Georgetown community on the challenges facing Muslim women in Europe. Hirsi Ali is outspoken on issues such as the role of women, immigration, development, and democracy. In her talk, Hirsi Ali combined political and policy analysis with personal anecdote. She related how she avoided an arranged marriage by deplaning in Germany when her Canada-bound airplane stopped to pick up more passengers. From Germany, she took a train to Holland where she set down roots, became educated, and emerged as a figurehead for human rights issues. Today the Netherlands and all of Europe face unprecedented challenges stemming from the growth of cultural and religious pluralism in largely secular societies.

The event was co-sponsored by the Berkley Center and BMW Center for German and European Studies.

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About Ayaan Hirsi Ali

Ayaan Hirsi Ali is currently a resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and a former member of parliament from the Netherlands, as well as a prominent critic of conservative Islam and advocate for its reform. She is outspoken on issues such as the role of women, immigration, development, democracy, and conservative Islam. Ali is the author of the controversial film on violence against Muslim women, Submission, directed by Theo Van Gogh, as well as the books Nomad (2010), Infidel (2007), and a collection of essays, The Caged Virgin (2006). Born in Somalia, she fled an arranged marriage and sought political asylum in the Netherlands, where she earned a political science degree and served in parliament for three years. Ali also worked as a researcher for the Wiardi Beckman Foundation and as an interpreter and advisor for the Office of Intercultural Communication in Leiden. She is now a permanent resident of the United States.

Ayaan Hirsi Ali's Profile